Nanny Bears Childcare

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are very happy and settled at the setting. They form close and trusting bonds with staff, who interact warmly with them and are very kind and caring. Staff know the children well and encourage them in everything they do. As a result, children flourish and thrive. They are confident and show high levels of self-esteem.

Staff plan and implement an ambitious curriculum that successfully challenges children to make good progress across all areas of learning. The focus of leaders and staff on developing children's independence and resilience successfully supports children in achieving their next steps in learning. Staff provide many opportunities for children to carry out tasks for themselves and to become socially confident with their peers.

Staff have high expectations for children and support them well through their positive interactions. Children's behaviour is good. Staff provide children with good opportunities to think and talk about their emotions and how they are feeling. This helps children to better recognise different emotions in themselves and in others.

The setting works well in partnership with parents. Parents report very positively on the good communication. They appreciate the nurturing environment, where their children are happy and grow in confidence.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

• Children are motivated and excited by the learning opportunities outside. Children visit the on-site farm every day, which offers real life experiences of what they have heard about in books and stories. As a result, children gain a deeper awareness of the wider world. They learn about the different animals, their diets and habitats, and develop an understanding of new words.
• Toddlers and pre-school children thoroughly enjoy using their senses to explore and investigate. For example, they work well together to cut and chop vegetables. This helps to develop their fine motor skills. They identify and name the vegetables, such as a 'leek' and 'potato', and talk about what they see inside when they cut them in half. Staff support children's understanding further by describing the features of the vegetables, such as the 'long green and white layers and the bulb' of the leek. This builds children's vocabulary further.
• Children understand the familiar routines and expectations of staff, which results in happy children with a positive attitude to learning. However, not all large-group times work as well as they could to ensure that children focus more and benefit fully from the learning opportunities provided.
• Staff working with babies understand what they need to learn next and how to help them achieve this. Staff plan some stimulating activities and set out some enjoyable resources for babies to explore. For example, they explore animal figures, learning their names and the noises they make.
• Children develop good communication and language. Staff encourage the babies to babble and make sounds. They use books to engage children's interests and get them talking. Toddlers and pre-school children label different sea creatures, such as a 'crab' and a 'lobster', as they play in the sand. They explore what will happen as they mix two different colours of water together. Although children benefit from targeted teaching that engages them well, staff do not always recognise when those children who do not yet communicate as well verbally need further support to participate fully.
• Strong bonds are developed between children and their key person, who gets to know them well. Staff use their assessments effectively to identify what children need to learn next. Staff work hard to ensure that children are well prepared for the next stage of education, including starting school. For example, they provide opportunities for children to use large tweezers to take pom-poms out of water. This helps to develop children's coordination and strengthens their hand muscles, ready for early writing.
• Children are well supported by staff to develop a good understanding of healthy lifestyles. Children benefit from lots of outdoor learning and physical play. They learn about and understand the importance of healthy eating, and benefit from a range of home-cooked meals that are prepared by the resident chef.
• Staff support children to take turns and be kind. Children help one another to carry boxes of resources. They stack bricks and play well with one another, taking on different roles when caring for the dolls during pretend play.
• The setting is well led and managed. Leaders encourage staff to extend their professional development through training to increase their knowledge and understanding. Leaders value and nurture staff's well-being. Staff confirm that they feel valued and well supported.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• make better use of group times to help children focus more and benefit fully from the learning opportunities provided
• develop further strategies to support those children who are not as confident to communicate verbally.